The quick homemade baguettes are the fastest solution to have bread in a few hours, especially when you have guests over for dinner and the stores are closed! In five hours, the aroma of bread will fill your home, with the risk of them being gone right out of the oven! Yes, because they are crispy and delicious and also perfect for making a sandwich for snack or eating them at breakfast with butter and jam! This time I abandoned my sourdough and used a high-quality dry sourdough like FRAGRANZASOL from Molino Colombo. These baguettes can also be made with sourdough, and you can find conversions at the end of the article. This time, you don’t even need a stand mixer! Just a bowl, a fork, and a kneading board! Come knead with me!
For more tasty sandwiches, I recommend checking out these links
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very economical
- Rest time: 3 Hours 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 30 Minutes
- Portions: 3 Pieces
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: French
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
The yeast I used, Frangranzasol from Molino Colombo, is not a common dry yeast found in supermarkets. It consists of dehydrated sourdough and less than 1% dry brewer’s yeast that gives the fermentation a boost. This means it is not as slow as a sourdough but not as fast as fresh or dry brewer’s yeast. It also has a good shelf life even in rolls like these baguettes.
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup water
- 26 oz autolyse dough
- 6 tbsps water
- 2 tbsps dry sourdough
- 2 tsps fine salt
Tools
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Spoon
- 1 Kneading Board
- 1 Bread Knife
- 1 Dough Scraper
- 2 Baking Pans
- 1 Food Wrap
Steps
Sift the chosen flour into a bowl. You can also mix all-purpose flour with spelt flour if you wish.
Start adding the autolyse water and begin to mix with a spoon. The flour should absorb the water.
In the end, it will be a rough and slightly hydrated dough. Cover with food wrap and let it rest for at least half an hour. If it’s warm, it’s better to let it rest in the fridge.
Once the autolyse is done, work the dough to soften it and transfer it to the kneading board.
Spread it out and place the dry sourdough on top.
Add 50 g of the remaining water.
Start working the dough well on the kneading board to absorb the yeast and create the gluten mesh. You need to be vigorous!
Once the dough has absorbed the yeast, spread it out on the kneading board.
Dissolve the salt in the remaining water and incorporate it into the dough. Work the dough again very well, energetically.
When the dough is homogeneous, firm, and smooth, make a ball.
Cover it with the bowl for half an hour.
Do two sets of slap and fold folds on the kneading board with half an hour intervals. This will structure the dough, making it smooth. Place it in the bowl covered with wrap until it doubles in size.
Once the dough has doubled, sprinkle the kneading board with some flour and gently turn out the dough onto it.
Divide the dough into three parts with a dough scraper and pre-shape them.
Place the three loaves on a baking sheet covered with a dusted tea towel and wrapped with plastic wrap. Let them rest for half an hour.
After the time has passed, gently take a portion of the dough and spread it out on the work surface, being careful not to break the fermentation gases.
Bring the upper part towards the center, pressing it down, and do the same with the lower part.
Roll the dough by sliding your hands on it. Seal the closure.
Place the baguettes on a baking sheet with the seam up, close together and separated by rolled foil or a tea towel. This will help them rise upwards rather than spreading out too much.
When they have risen (about 1 and a half hours later), flip them over with the help of your arm onto a baking sheet and make sharp, oblique cuts. To make them crunchier, this last rise can be done in the fridge for about 2 hours if you have more time.
While the final rise is finishing, preheat the oven to 430/465°F and let it reach temperature. Before baking, spray a bit of water on the baguettes with a sprayer or place a pan of water on the bottom of the oven. Bake for 15/18 minutes. The quick homemade baguettes are ready!
Storage of Quick Homemade Baguettes
The quick homemade baguettes can last 3/4 days if stored in a paper bag… but they are very likely to be gone sooner! If you liked these baguettes, I’ll see you on Instagram!
FAQ
Can I use a stand mixer?
Of course! The process is the same, but it’s less effort! It takes about 15 minutes to knead these baguettes with a stand mixer. With the stand mixer, it’s even more important to do a cold autolyse because it can tend to overheat the dough.
Can I use sourdough or fresh yeast?
To get baguettes quickly, the alternative is to use fresh brewer’s yeast, about half a block. With 100/120 g of sourdough, you can get beautiful baguettes but with longer rising times.
